Hornbeam (Carpinus betulus)

Our range of Hornbeam bare root plants (Carpinus betulus)

We have Hornbeam bare root plants in several sizes and specifications.   The 1U1 specification plants are seedlings (often called whips) which were planted from seed in the spring and instead of being sold in the following November to April period they are kept in the same positions in our fields and grown on for a further year or longer which makes a strong bushy plant. The roots are trimmed underneath the soil by a specialised machine to help develop a fibrous root system.

We also have Hornbeam transplants which begin as one year old whips which are lifted, have their roots trimmed to encourage bushy growth and are then planted back out for one or more growing seasons in a different area of our fields at lower density to give each plant more space, nutrients and water. 

The specification 1+1 means that a one year old seedling has been grown on for an additional one year.  A 1+2 specification means that a one year old seedling has been grown on for a further two years - and so on.  Some of our Hornbeam hedging plants are chunky mature specimens, ideal for creating virtually an instant hedge.

Hornbeam is one of our top selling species so we always have several batches of seed including UK provenance , sometimes Select Stand, and often also one of the highest quality imported Select Stand imported seeds, so if the seed provenance is particularly important to you, please give us a call.   This is a blog on seed provenance which explains this topic.

We also have cell grown Hornbeam plants which are grown by one of the UK's best specialist growers and these are ideal for forestry, woodland creation and amenity planting schemes but can also be used for domestic planting schemes.  Cell grown plants are available all year round.

All of the plants we sell are suitable as hedging plants or can be allowed to grow as full size trees.

You can read more about the various specifications we offer in each species on the tab just below our pricing table to the right of this product description.

Hornbeam (Carpinus betulus) Summary

Nearly all descriptions of Hornbeam start with “Very similar to beech other than …” and we’ll be no different!   The attributes that are like beech are that it keeps most of its leaves through winter and it can be tightly pruned as a hedge or grown as a deciduous broadleaf tree.  The differences are that the leaves are finely toothed, go brown (rather than copper colour) in winter and it’s better suited to damp soils. It is native to the south of the UK but widely planted throughout the UK. Hornbeam wood is the hardest wood in Europe, and it is thought the common name derives from it being used as oxen yokes, attached to their horns, hence hornbeam and was also used to build Roman chariots due to the strength of the wood. See our blog on the differences between beech and hornbeam.

Soil and Situation

Hornbeam is good in heavy to loamy, moist soils particularly in central southern England – but not so wet that alder, willow or Black poplar would be more appropriate.  It prefers neutral to acid soils. For dry soils with a similar appearance to Hornbeam, look at beech instead. Hornbeam grows well in full sun, partial shade or even full shade.

Leaves, flowers and fruit

The leaves opening from fat buds, appear pleated until they are fully open and then you can see that the pleats are actually deep ribs in the centre of each leaf. The leaves have serrated edges and turn a lovely golden colour in autumn before the colour fades to a greyish brown for winter.  Some leaves drop in autumn but most stay on the tree or hedge providing excellent winter cover for wildlife and then the leaves drop in spring as the new buds burst.   It has male and female “flowers” on the same plant (catkin like) which are wind pollinated and turn into papery winged nutlets and are eaten by small birds. Male catkins are twice as long as the female catkins. The musculur trunk and flame-like bark is pale grey and smooth, vertically fluted or corrugated as it matures, and the twigs can be slightly hairy.

Eventual height and growth rate

As a broadleaf tree, Hornbeam will grow to about 20m with a rounded bushy crown.  It can be coppiced.  As a hedge, or a component within a mixed hedge, it is best at about 1.5m to 3m height. Growth rate is average – young plants will grow by about 50cm pa.

We don’t grow Hornbeam to the height required for pleached trees, but Hornbeam is one of the most popular varieties for pleaching because of its very straight trunks and the holding on through winter of most of its leaves.   We recommend www.ornamental-trees.co.uk if you are interested in Hornbeam pleached trees. 

This section gives definitions on the specifications of plants that we sell.  We are specialists in field grown (or bare root) plants which are grown in two ways.  The majority are grown from seed, some are ready within one growing season (seedlings or 1+0's) and some species require two growing seasons (1u1's).  In addition to growing from seed we also grow from small plants or cuttings (transplants) which are much more widely spaced (taking more land, more irrigation water, fertilisers and labour).  There are only a handful of bare root wholesale nurseries in the UK and of those even fewer grow transplants but Ray Jenkins has many years' experience of transplanting so we grow these in large volumes.  Ray has written this blog about the benefits of bare root plants and how they are grown and another blog which gives further detail on bare root specifications.

The detailed specifications are shown below.  If you are in doubt about what specification to use please email us on enquiries@rjtreesandhedging.co.uk with a description of the project (and photos if appropriate) and we will advise you.

1+0 - field grown in one season from seed, known as a seedling (sometimes called a whip), generally a slender single stem plant.   These are the cheapest specification and are particularly suitable for planting where weed competition will be less intense, soil is shallow or on exposed windy sites.  Gives a high root to shoot ratio and minimal plant "check".

2+0 - a 2 year seedling, field grown from seed in the same seed bed in two growing seasons where the species cannot be grown to a saleable plant from seed in one season

1U1 - 2 year old plant called an undercut, field grown for two seasons in the same seed bed and undercut by machine (a sharp blade cutting the roots under the soil level) after the first year to develop the root structure. We do this with several species which take 2 years to develop (eg oak, beech, hornbeam)

1+1 - 2 year old plant (transplant) grown from seed in the first year and then transplanted into a different area of the field and spaced out for the second growing season - a robust plant with a larger and more robust root system than seedling or undercut plant which will enable it to better withstand drought and weed competition. Often the best choice and the staple norm for farm hedging and this specification is a requirement of the Countryside Stewardship Grant

1+2- a 3 year old plant, two years field growing in the seedbed and then transplanted (and spaced out) for a further two growing seasons giving a tall, stocky, bushy plant

2+1- a 3 year old plant, two years field growing in the seedbed and then transplanted (and spaced out) for a further growing season, giving a strong bushy plant

3+1 - as above but field grown for a further growing season for more height and a very bushy plant

1+3- 4 year old, one year field growing in the seed beds and then transplanted (and spaced out) for three years, giving a very strong, bushy plant

2+2- 4 year old, two years field growing in the seed beds and then transplanted (and spaced out) for a further two years - a very mature plant suited to certain species like beech and hornbeam where we can offer almost instant hedging

and some that are a bit different.....

P9 - a plant grown in a greenhouse or polytunnel in a 9cm pot (for holly which germinates poorly in the field)

Cell grown - a plant grown in small deep cells (like a small yogurt pot) and then lifted out of those for transportation. Commonly used in forestry and large hedging projects.  Very high quality plants with excellent success rate.  See our blog on the benefits of cell grown plants.

C+1 or C+2 - a 3 or 4 year old plant initally started as hardwood cuttings grown on for a year as cell grown plants and then lined out in fields to grow on for a further 1 or 2 years (a technique used for Cherry Laurel)

0/1 - a hardwood cutting, then field grown for one season (for example for white willow, black poplar and osier)